


Halloween

by Rakshi



Category: Lord of the Rings RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-02
Updated: 2011-12-02
Packaged: 2017-10-26 19:23:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/286992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rakshi/pseuds/Rakshi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Halloween night and Sean's out 'trick or treating'.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Halloween

He glances at the caller ID and smiles as he hits ‘Talk’. “Hey, Sean!”

“Boo!”

Elijah laughs softly. “Boo to you too, dude. Wha‘cha doing?”

“Watching Ally walk to a few houses near ours… Trick or Treating.”

“You dressed up?”

Sean hears the giggle in the words and rolls his eyes.

“That would be a, ‘No’, Elwood.”

“Too bad. I like it when you dress up.”

“Elijah!”

Full blown laughter pours out of the earpiece now, and Sean has to smile. “When have I EVER…”

“Ohh… you did once! Don’t deny it.”

“As WHAT!?” Sean explodes.

“As some guy wearing a raggedy flannel shirt and an equally raggedy coat,” Elijah told him. “You looked like ‘Bob-the-fucking-Builder!”

“Mister Smith?” Sean asks, thinking. “When did I…”

“When I visited Vancouver a couple years ago,” Elijah replies.

“Oh good grief, Elijah! I only…”

Sean stop speaking abruptly, and Elijah hears another voice, Ally’s, then the low rumble that he knows is Sean as he leans to speak to her. Then suddenly the voices clear, and Elijah hears: “Yes, sweetie. You can go up to Mrs. Swanson’s house. Knock… and then you know what to say when she opens the door. Daddy’s going to stay here and watch you to be sure you’re OK.”

“God, Sean, you’re such a good Dad,” Elijah breathes into the phone, his words charged with heartfelt admiration and a vague sadness that yanks at Sean’s heart.

He blushes at the compliment, wracking his brain for a response… unexpectedly drawing a blank. He feels grateful, and stupidly incapable of coherent thought. “Thank you, Lij,” he finally stammers. There’s silence on the other end of the line. “Lij? You ok?”

Sean hears a long inhale and exhale and smiles. ‘I taught him that trick,’ he thinks. “Lij?” he asks again. “You OK, babe?”

Silence.

“Elijah, I can’t hear you when you nod.”

Sean smiles when he hears the giggle of response, and then Elijah’s voice, dead serious, floats into his ear. “It’s odd, Sean. The fact that you’re a wonderful father is one of the reasons why I love you so very much.” Silence. And though the tension in the silence is almost palpable, Sean has the good sense not to say a word.

“And…,” Elijah continues after a moment, his voice low. “It’s also one of the biggest reasons why I’ll never have the life with you that I want to have.”

“You don’t know that. You can’t because *I* don’t know that.”

“Sean…”

“Please don’t say we’ll never have that life because hearing that breaks my heart. I have to believe we WILL have it… or I couldn’t go on. All the separations… the deceptions… the living on phone calls.”

“Sean…”

“No Elijah. No! We will have that life. I know it!”

Elijah hears a small voice: “Daddy? Are we going home now? Who you yelling at?”

Sean laughs. “I’m not yelling, honey. Just talking to Uncle Elijah. Wanna say ‘Hi’?”

Ally jumps at the chance to talk to one of her favorite uncles, and while she describes her costume to Elijah, Sean chews his lip and thinks.

He finally retrieves the phone, and after some discussion, allows Ally to visit one more house. “Hang on, Lij… OK?” he asks. “Please don’t go yet.” He hears a muttered: “I’m not going anywhere,” as he directs Ally up the next sidewalk, watching her follow a few other children in costumes. “Don’t forget to say ‘Thank you’,” Sean yells after her.

“Lij? Lij, you there?” Sean asks, a bit breathlessly.

“Here, Sean. Right here.”

“Listen to me,” Sean growls. “Believe me. Believe IN me. We WILL have the life we want. Together! We WILL, Elijah!”

“OK, Sean. I do believe in you. It’s just hard at times. Even wanting it leaves me feeling like a bad person.”

“Well, you’re not. And neither am I! We’re two people who fell in love. We didn’t’ mean to. We’ve stood on our heads to keep others from being hurt by it. But I won’t wear a Halloween costume forever, Elijah. I simply won’t.”

“I like hearing that.”

“Well… good!” Sean grumbled. “Because I can’t bear hearing your voice sound sad.”

Another voice floats over the earpiece. Not Elijah’s. Saying words Sean can’t quite catch. Then he hears Elijah again. Sighing.

“I gotta run, Sean. See you next week?” Elijah asks softly.

“Yes. Tuesday… just like we planned. I’ll call before then, though.”

“Yeah. Do. And… on Tuesday… dress up like Mister Smith for me?” Elijah asks, giggling. “Or better yet, RUDY! I love a guy in uniform.”

“Yeah? Think so, do you!” Sean grins into the phone. “That cup might give us a few problems, Elwood.”

“We’ll work’um out.”

“Count on it.”

“Happy Halloween, Sean. Love you.”

“Happy Halloween, Elijah. I love you too.”

*click*


End file.
